Pre-3, Brawl Tourney and Other News

Well, I am going to France this weekend until next week, so it is looking like I am going to miss E3 this year, which is a shame as I was looking forward to finding out what Nintendo had to say. And Microsoft and Sony of course. Obviously, I will catch up on it when I get back, but here are my predictions for the big 3.

Nintendo:
I wish I knew. Seriously, they said they had 3 big announcements a while back, and we haven't heard anything since. It could be anything. I think we will hear about additional storage and voice chat, but on the game front, people are saying it could be Star Fox, Legend of Zelda, Animal Crossing (that is where my money is) or perhaps a new FPS IP(Intellectual Property). (Talking of which, read below if you are interested in FPS's on the Wii... ) Hopefully there will be some news about the Forces Unleashed as well...

Micrsoft:
Big long speech about how amazing the 360 is. Then a big old price drop about the aforementioned amazing 360. Then they will talk about all the great games coming out. Namely Fable 2, Gears of War 2 (that's a big one) Fallout 3, EndWar, I could keep listing to be honest. Then they could shock everyone and announce a hand-held console. Or they might not.

Sony:
Brag about Blu-Ray, talk about MGS sales, have a big old demonstration of LittleBig planet, mention Home, drop the price significantly, again, talk about PSP 2. Which will have motion sensing, mutli-point touch screen and hey, maybe even 2 screens.

What am I looking forward to? Mainly Fable 2, Fallout 3 and Forces Unleashed, and a FPS that I will talk about below. Obviously, should be good to see Gears 2, but I think I know what to expect from that. I am also looking forward to what Nintendo's big announcements are going to be.

What is this FPS I have been talking about then? It goes by the name Conduit and it is not being released on the PS2, making it a Wii game built for the Wii. So obviously, this means better graphics, but when the developers start to say things like

"feels a lot more like they're making a 360/PS3 title than a Wii title"

It is difficult not to get excited. And then they release gameplay footage:

It's damn near impossible. And there will be a playable demo at E3.This, in their words, will revolutionize development for the Wii. 16 player online is the target, they also said they have taken inspiration from the best parts of uber successful shooters, like Halo, hopefully that means match making, party options, playlists, everything. The best part is, they are working with Nintendo to bring the best online experience possible. Stay tuned for more details.

A couple of posts ago I mentioned doing a massive Brawl tourney. Now the aim is to get 64 or 128 people signed up. Let me explain what this tourney is about:

I had this idea ages back when Brawl was coming out in the US, it has now finally arrived in the UK, so now is the time to do it.

It is basically a giant online tournament. We would get as many people as possible (64 or maybe even 128) and set out fixtures for each of the games. All of the games would abide by some set rules. We make sure that everyone can make the dates they need to at the start for the first round, then organise the next round based on who gets through.

Here is where it gets cool however. The matches would be Stock, but with a time limit of 3 minutes. Then, at the start, the most well equipped person to do this, films the match (saving the replay and then recording it with whatever means they have) Now while I know this is a Nintendo forum, I am assuming that some of you have played Halo 3. It would be similar to the service that Bungie offer. Each game would be recorded with the replay available, screen shots taken by the participants and all the data that is presented at the end of the match.

So like Halo, each match would have a page with all this information. Then each registered player would have a page which includes all of their stats (ie. total damage done over the whole tourney) as well as their screen shots, maybe some information about them and there current status in the tourney.

So obviously, this is going to need loads of people (64/128) so if you are interested, there is almost definitely space. You can sign up with a comment on this page (include your Brawl Code and Wii code), or on this forum or you can email me @thekileyenator@gmail.com

By pooling all my brawl contacts and some eariler registers, I have got a total 7 people, so we still have a long way to go, but I do believe this can happen.

Super Smash Rant

For everyone's information, my Brawl code is: 5069 - 5371 - 3115, if you add me, be sure to tell me your code. I play Samus.

Ok, so Brawl has come out in the Uk, I got it on launch day and I was considerably less hyped about it then than I was some months ago. Well done Nintendo. This post is a list of all the things that bug me, annoy me or are just plain right stupid.

Online is the biggest one. Why can't I do everything online with Friends? Surely I should be able to do tourney, Co-Op, rotation Special Brawl and custom stages. It is absurd. Why can I not send messages outside a game to my friends? Why am I only online when playing online, can't I be online when playing the campaign. Why isn't there stat tracking or leader boards. Why is the online better in Mario Kart, a 3+, than in Brawl, a 12+ and definitely hard core title. Why are there lag issues when this is the biggest game on the Wii? Why aren't there playlists (ie. for KO fest/ Stock etc)

Why on earth can I not use the point in the menus?! When you are choosing a character, you literally are moving a cursor ideal for a pointer. Did they just not work it out? Why can't it remember which name you use by default. Every time I have to select THK, JUST REMEMBER IT!

The subspace Embissary clearly cost a lot of development time to produce, just look at the fancy cut scenes. So why is it, for the large part, dull or frustrating. Some of the levels are fun, but why isn't it all? Because their level design, in some places, is non existent. Some times it is just really boring, like a flat path with one jump. Other times the controls, which are built for a button bashing fighter, just aren't up to the job of platformer. It isn't without it's positives, but I would have preferred if the development time had been spent on the online.

Why is the game still unbalanced? You have had years to craft these characters, you haven't added that much since Melee, surely balancing Snake wouldn't be too hard.

Unlockable content is fine, to a degree. But unlocking options?! That would be like if you had to play 5 hours on Halo to get the inverted control scheme.

Small gripe, but why are GC controllers players 1 before Wiimotes. Why can't I set the default to not be KO fest in Brawls.

Well, when all is said and done, it isn't as long as I thought it was going to be. Also, happy Bungie day for yesterday. I hope you all downloaded the map and played the playlist, I know I did. I got a Killtacular on Swords, was very happy. The map is one of my favourites from H2 (I think...) and any map with teleporters is always cool. Anyway, more posts to come. FK watchers, you will be pleased to know I have finally got my head round how it is going to fit together (well mostly)

Release Dates

Play.com recently announced some UK release dates, most significantly, for Fable 2. Play.com slated the release date as May 30th. This sounds great to me, perhaps a little too near Brawl, but none the less, sounds good. Unfortunately, Lionhead Studios have denied this release date, saying it "is pure speculation". This is obviously disappointing, as the website implied the game would come out when leaves turn brown, ie. autumn. Still, at least it puts a bit of space between Fable and Brawl.

Or does it, a highly reputable source, has released he first realistic release date for Brawl. Tesco have said the release date will be the 1st of January 2020. So, I will be programming the countdown tonight!

On a side note, you may start noticing references to something called Frozen Kangaroo. This is a game that I am designing/developing (still very much in the designing stage). As a result, you will start to see more posts about game design, and references to Frozen Kangaroo will appear, you can use these to piece together the game, as I will not be releasing any official information till further down the line. You can see the first piece of concept art here. If you've got time, check the rest of his DeviantArt, it's good stuff and he will be the lead artist in FROZEN KANGAROO.

Super Smash Brothers Brawl Released in the US

Brawl has been released in America. Now just Europe and the rest of the world to go. While sales reports are yet to come in, both Gamespots and IGNs review of Nintendo's hotly anticipated fighter are up. They both give the game a 9.5, the highest score (bar perfect) While the reviews are not identical, they both have similar criticisms, mainly of the Subspace Emissary.

"...there are some[levels]--in particular the automatically scrolling ones--that the game could have done without"
"...as it is simply not as balanced or entertaining as the stages designed for multiple human opponents"

Despite this, the Subspace Emissary is just a bonus feature, and when it comes to the actual multiplayer, they do not have a bad word to say. They even declare all four controller options to be completely viable. Also, they say the online plays lag free, and, while you cannot play your own maps online, it doesn't really matter. You can also share photos, videos and stages online. I won't bore you will all the features, as thy are all listed on the Smash Bro's Dojo. It is suffice to say, this is my no. 1 anticipated game for 2008 and I physically don't know if I can wait. Maybe I should just buy an American Wii and play Brawl today. If you want to be excited about Brawl, read the two reviews, check the Dojo for photos from the American users and play Melee.

On a side note, I have set up my real Xbox Live account, what a load of fuss that was, and they expect you to pay for it! My ID: theTHK123, if you send a message saying you read my blog, I will accept you instantly! Current games: Halo and Forza but should be getting Fable and Merc 2 when they come out this year.

Blog Update For February

Brawl has a release date! The 6th of June is supposedly the release date for Super Smash Bro's Brawl in Europe. On Gamespot, this is the listed release date, although, having said that, there has been no such mention on the Dojo. Furthermore, this is some what undermined by Game's website listing the release date as the 1st of May and Nintendo, the publisher of Brawl, refusing to confirm any of these release dates. Personally, I think it will come out 6th June, but that date is not set in stone just yet. It will probably be confirmed after the American release date (March24th)

Also, you will have noticed I have slightly spruced up the design. I hope you like the improvements. The next couple of months I will be working to put the Podcast together and hopeful securing some interviews for the blog. Then the focus will switch to the Flash Media Player - to play said podcasts and videos. Finally, when that is all done, I will hopefully have a proper server and I will build a forum. If you would like to secure your desired user name, because there will be so much demand, I will be setting up a form on the forum page in the coming months. Please do, as it will give me an idea of the no. of users. All you will need to do is write down your desired user name and your email address so I can contact you when the forum is being built.

GDC was this month. There was a very interesting video about Fable Two presented by Peter Molyneux. It really made me want to dig up my copy of Fable. It was a shame, as being English, no one got any of his ironic jokes, however, I still enjoyed it. One highlight was when he went to visit his husband and child (yes, he was female and had to be pregnant - [he apologised for there being no labour mini game) When he arrived, his child ran up to him and was like "Hey Mummy, your home!" Whereas, when he went up to his husband, he was cross that he had left him for so long. Then, his co-op partner just shot his husband. Peter then explained how that was it, game over for his husband. He could not and would not come back. When he went away adventuring, his child would be taken in to an orphanage. I may possibly be doing a 3 part feature, one a preview on F2, one discussing the Good/Bad decisions that make the heart of Fable and a third on something else.

Also, there was a video for the new Unreal Engine. Personal highlight was the "Block of meat we built" This was to demonstrate the soft body physics engine the new build will feature. Also, there were some cool water effects. The engine was demoed with the Gears of War protagonist. Talking of Gears of War, I purchased a copy for a friend on Ebay, so, if it turns up on Wednesday, I will be able to play on it for that evening.

Oh yes, there was a , albeit brief, trailer of Gears of War. Very cool and well worth checking out (All links are at the bottom of the post)

GDC, as good as it is now, will, like E3, change. This is because it is meant to be an academic event and, following the collapse of E3, it has become much more commercialised. I feel this is good, as I don't want another E3, however, the way they are securing this future is by banning all non-full time journalists. Meaning - I can't go.

Also, Civilization Revolutions has been put on indefinite hold for the Wii (not for the 360 or the PS3) This usually means cancelled, which will be a shame as the Wii is the console most suited to this title.

EA Bought 2K this month. 2K being the publisher of Civilization. While Sid doesn't seem to be too fussed, I am worried as EA has a habit of milking cows till they bleed, and even then. I can't count on all my fingers and toes the number of Sims titles there have been, for example. We will have to see where this partnership goes, because, between the two of them, they have quite a lot of every market cornered. The last big publisher is THQ and Sega maybe. Oh, and Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo, but they don't count.

Op-Ed Article: Graphics Galore (title pending) I will be looking at the supposed "HD Era" and how good good graphics actually are. Can they be the icing on a cake or make up on a elephant? You will have to read tomorrow to find out.

Links

• UK Brawl Release Date (GS)
• UK Brawl Release Date(Game)
• Fable 2 Video (GS)
• Unreal Engine 2 (GS)
• Gears of War 2 Trailer(GS)
• Sid Meier Interview
  

Brawl is Mental

This has gone beyond a joke, anyone who thought Halo was big, should see the amount of stuff being put on to Brawl. The size of anticipation for this game is literally only rivalled by the sheer amount of content going in to it. In case you haven't been keeping up with Dojo updates, I suggest you read the latest post:Vault.

They filled up a huge post with one section of the menu. Also, on Friday, they announced the game would include Virtual Console demos (including Super Metroid!!!) I genuinely do no know how they can fit all this on one disk, or how I am going to be able to wait for this games, as of yet, unannounced release. Super Smash Bros' Brawl comes out in Japan on the 31st.

Also, just read a preview of The Forces Unleashed, mainly focusing on the 360 and PS3 versions. I don't know which console I am going to get this game on, as all the cool graphical and technical stuff on the 360 sounds awesome, but Wii Remote light-sabering sounds UNMISSABLE. I might actually end up getting both; ridiculous.

On a completly irrelevant note, I just finished my first proper website, a driving school in Thame. If you are considering learning to drive, I suggest you go with the Drive Masters: www.mgschoolofmotoring.co.uk If you have any suggestions or are interested in a website, email me @ thekileyenator@gmail.com

Brawl Delayed

The US and Japanese sites have stated that Brawl, the much anticipated forthcoming game for the Wii has been delayed. For Japan, the game will now come out in Jan 31st and for the US to March 9th. While there has been no mention of the UK release date, I imagine that we will get Brawl at the end of March. The notice says:

Due to delays in the completion of Super Smash Bros. Brawl, we’ve had to change the release date of the game to Sunday, March 9th.

I deeply apologize to the people who have looked forward to playing the game for so long and ask that you hold on just a little longer. Thank you for your patience.

On a side note, today's update features some breath taking graphics. The game has looked good up until now, but when I saw these, it made me think of LittleBig Planet, the graphically stunning and Nintendoesque PS3 exclusive coming out some time this year.

Also, Medal of Honour 2: Heroes, is coming out Feb 7th in the UK, after I have finished my first web design contract so I will hopefully getting that, as it will be after my Xbox Live subscription runs out.

Finally, I will be posting an unusual post in the coming days, it will contain a review of, get this, the new Eagles album, Long Road out of Eden. Even more unusual, a brief review of, get this too, an ITV comedy. Anyone who knows me, will know that I never watch ITV, so this has got to be pretty special. If I don't get it done by Friday, all I can say is, watch "Moving Wallpaper" and then "Echo Beach" afterwards.

On a side note, I emailed EA about my A levels I am going to take. Unfortunately, I was at first very frustrated by their website as it required me to first create an account, then specify System, Game, Issue, Sub issue and even more specific sub issue. Also, because my question was so obscure and nothing to do with Billing information on Alpha Centurai, I was expecting a reply saying this is not relevant. However, I have already got my email back and the person, who apparently didn't know, and gone to find out. On top of this, the answer was very infomative and has genuinely helped me. So EA, thumbs up!

Crazy, Crazy World

Two random things that just make no sense (like the law against suicide- what is the point?)

Went in to Game after school today and saw they had changed the 360 bundle I was planning to purchase (the games included) The games it now includes were 2 games that I didn't want. So I asked if it was possible to swap the games, and this is their policy:

"No we are not able to do that, however, if you don't open them, after a week you can swap them for any game in our stock"

So I asked, isn't that just the same as just giving me the games when I buy it? Yes, but there isn't anything we can do. What is the point?! I am going to go home, set up my 360, add some friends, try to set up silver live and then wait a week, playing on my Wii. Seriously...that literally makes no sense.

Second thing, today the Brawl update is about friend codes. They are different from your Wii codes. So you have to add the same person twice to get them both on your Wii and Brawl. Why? Why would you do that, it is obviously possible to do MP games (Endless Ocean) so what do these separate codes add? You can read the update here

Nintendos new green policy: recycling content

Just a small jive at Nintendo, then back to normal anti-PS3 stuff. Some of you may be aware that a recent survey conducted by Greenpeace, to rate all companies on how environmentally friendly companies are, gave Nintendo a 0/10, the first company ever to do this. But don't worry everyone, they are now recycling content!

Also, some of you will follow the Brawl updates (RSS feed on right>>) Today, they announced that they would be including some melee maps in Brawl. Now you could argue that these are in addition to the ones in Brawl so it is good. However, they, presumably, require some transformation to run with the new engine. I would prefer it if they could work on a new maps or even better some more online functionality. To be honest, I am not too bothered, but I thought the title was too good to not use.

Brawl has a Map Editor

As much as I am enjoying Metroid Prime, there is one game that I am looking forward to, a lot more. That is Brawl. Every day I check the website for new updates. Today, a Map Editor was announced. Not a little on the fly thing a la Halo, a full blown(ish) map editor. You can choose from all the backgrounds and then there are what looks to be a large selection of shapes, all of which can be coloured and skinned. Furthermore there are all the normal items you would find in a game of SSB. It really does look amazing.

What's more, you can send your maps to friends and save them to SD cards (so no need to worry about size) But if this wasn't enough, you can submit a map (once per day) to Nintendo. Then every day, a new map will be sent to your Wii, created by someone else. You are then able to play on it for that day. Then the day after, the map will have changed. Apart from that being simply amazingly cool, that will be quite a technical feet also. As the Dojo says, "With a feature like that, won’t I be able to play this game forever?!" You can read all about it here...

Brawl is currently set to release in the UK at the end of February. And yes, I will have a counter.

Brawl Online

Well, we all knew it was going to happen, but it has finally been confirmed. Super Smash Bros Brawl will support online multiplayer modes. It will not support voice chat, you can, however, pre-set messages (taunts) and then use the D-Pad to send them. However, these can only be sent when playing friends. When playing unknown opponents, you don't get to see there name and you cannot send taunts. Although this hasen't been specified, all things point to it not being easy to swap Wii numbers if you enjoyed playing with someone, as there is no way of finding out their name. Considering you have no way of contacting them, there is no way that you will ever get to play again, except by extreme chance. Although I am exceedingly pleased that it will be supporting online, this is a major disappointment. Hal Labortory, the people developing Brawl, said that there were to be further online modes to be announced (please co-op) so we will have to see. Read the whole thing here...

Also, if you haven't been keeping up with the updates, which you really should be, a single player mode has been announced called the SubSpace Emissary, it is a side scrolling game. You can read all the updates on the dojo, but it is shaping up to look really good. The character design is outstanding, and considering they aren't even playable characters just makes you realise how much attention has gone in to this game. This, along with other cool things such as my music, is making me eat my foot in anticipation for this game. I simply cannot wait.

Finally, there are many people who can't wait for a different title; Halo 3. For a lucky few the wait is now over, for once, in the UK first! Argos, a retail store, has broken the release date set by Microsoft and released Halo 3. Microsoft are said the be in the process of punishing Argos, I just wish I was one of the lucky few. If just so I could rub it in to every Halo fanboy and then play it at my friends house while he watches in envy. Well done if you got a copy, enjoy it! Read the full story here...

Blog Update

I need to get through the E3 conferences then I will return to normal posting. There have been a couple of interesting news items on the Dojo website(site for Super Smash Bros Brawl) that I want to write about. Also, I have got both Civ 4 Beyond the Sword and Resident Evil 4 (which ended up with me missing paintball to go to London to get a new passport, suffice to say that it wasn't fun) for the Wii. Both are very good if a little too addictive. Here are my early impressions:

Civ 4: Beyond the Sword

An excellent expansion pack, the changes have both a dramatic and level effect to the game and the Mods are truly inspiring.

Resident Evil 4: Wii Edition

A much needed graphical feast for the Wii, the game is truly disturbing, the control scheme is a little difficult to get used to at first, but feels natural after a few tense minutes.

Full reviews of both of those titles coming soon. It was my birthday last Tuesday. I got a TV for my room so will now be playing a lot more Wii, so will hopefully complete Zelda (which just keeps getting better and better as you get further in)

The Smash Update I was talking about earlier is the single player mode. It will the first Smash Bros proper single player mode (as opposed to the previous versions which just had consecutive battles with all the different characters) There have been two modes announced so far. The first mode announced was quite similar to the previous entities except characters, as I understand it, level up. The second and far more interesting mode, named the Subspace Emissary is a side scrolling game with some story. The website gave the impression that this mode was sort of one stage as it were. You can pause/save as usual, but it would lead into the next level. This all looks very exciting. I do recommend staying up to date with the updates as this game is looking very cool. I can't wait. You can follow it here.

For my birthday I went to an outdoor swimming pool with some friends and then 3 came round for a gaming night. Although we only played a select number of games, compared to the plan to play hundreds, it was still a lot of fun. Halo dominated the early play with Smash Bros taking over later. Two of my friends, who are pretty much equal at Smash Bros played a 99 Stock (live) game. They started at 4am and lost one life each. I went to sleep but apparently they finished at 8am. They played without pauses. It was pretty hardcore.

Upcoming Posts:

• Nintendo and Sony Press Conference Details
• E3 Roundup
• Civ 4 Warlords review

Thankyou for reading veteran gamer, for the latest gaming news, reviews, previews and analysis.

Dojo Update [Start-05/06/07]

This is your first update of what has been published in the Dojo. I will aim to publish every Sunday, however, I have missed the first one as I was in Cornwall. This week[ish] has had no major updates. There are a couple of music tracks and some characters that we already knew about. Also, there are some items, which are probably the most exciting updates. So here is what has been announced.

Battlefield - Map

This is the simple map. The maps structure does not change has the battles goes on. It features just a simple set of platforms that can provide a very simple, but none the less fun, game of SSBB. To counter the relative dullness of the map, as the battle progresses, so does the time of the day. You can start in the afternoon, fight right through the night and in to dawn. This will probably be the most long term played map in the game.

The Musicians - Music

This item lists the musicians that will be behind the soundtrack in the game. Also, there is the most iconic piece of Smash Bros music ever. Almost anyone who has shown the slightest interest in video games will recognise this epic piece of music. This music is, and will remain until the Dojo trumps it, on the sidebar at the top. All future music updates will have the player embedded into the post.

Mario - Character

The most famous character is, unsurprisingly, in the latest Super Smash Bros. Some cool images are revealed in this post but not very many details. He is said to be the balanced character that will be easy to get to grips with, combining good attacks, with good jumping and good everything else. His Smash Move (see later) has been announced. Basically he will catch fire and damage everything near him in a massive attack.

Link - Character

The character taken from the Zelda series will also be featuring in this game. The model will be based on his latest adventure, Twighlight Princess, you can read my review for that here. This character will be more weapons heavy than Mario, and will require a little more practice to get the best performance

Gooey Bomb - Item

This weapon is similar to the likes of a plasma grenade in Halo. You throw it and it will stick on most things in the game. I will then explode, causing serious damage. However, if you get one stuck on you, all is not lost as it is possible to stick it back on to the person who "tagged" you.

Pit - Character

Pit is a character from Kid Icarus. No details have been released about how he fits in with the rest of the characters, two special moves however, have been announced. Firstly, he will be able to fire a "Palutena Arrow" This can be controlled after fire, but this will require quick reactions as the arrow moves at the speed of light! Also, he can enter a free flight mode, which is basically a superior jump with much greater freedom. However, be warned, it will end, so make sure you are over the ground

Final Smash - Game Feature

Final smash is a unique move that exists in each character. Although only Marios has been officially announced, Warios appears to be a gigantic fart and Kirby appears to cook people. You can find out more speculations in this post. It will be a move that each player can conduct once throughout the whole game. It can only be executed if you get the Smash Ball. I imagine that many of these attacks will be amusing to say the least.

Moving and Shooting - Game Feature

Automatic firing weapons have been brought back to the game. This time round you can move and even jump whilst shooting. Power to the people!

Cracker Launcher - Item

This is basically a rocket launcher. You pick it up and fire. Simple, but effective. Some of the pictures in this update really show off the graphics.

Delfino Plaza - Map

This map will fly you around the beautiful city of Delfino. Every so often the map will fly you to a different section of the map. This can be very distracting, making it a much harder map for veteran players. As for the set up of the map, it changes as you fly around but none of the screen shots make it look to complicated.

Yoshis Story Ending - Music

This song is very good. It is not as good as menu 01, but is certainly worth a listen. Check it out here: